Falling From Eternity (A Paranormal Love Story) (14 page)

“
I’m sorry,” she replied
sweetly with sincerity.

“
It’s okay.” I smiled,
trying to convey I wasn’t still hurt by their passing. That life
was nothing more than a long forgotten dream.

“
How’s the dessert?” I
asked, trying to change the subject to a lighter note.

She looked down at her plate, and then
back at me with a newly blossomed blush forming on her cheeks. “Oh,
my gosh! I’m so sorry. I ate the whole thing!”

I chuckled at her, finding her
absolutely adorable. I liked a girl with an appetite. She’d make a
damn good vampire.

“
Do you want me to order
something else?” she asked, turning around in her seat to try and
grab our waiter’s attention.

“
No, it’s alright.” I
placed my hand atop hers, daring to calm her and craving the warmth
of her soft skin.

“
Are you sure?” she looked
back at her dessert plate sheepishly.

“
Yes,” I laughed at her
again. “How about this? Next time
I
get all the dessert.”

She raised her brows at me, a cheery
smile burgeoning on her face. “So there’s going to be a next
time?”

“
I sure hope so.” I began
running my thumb up and down her hand as I looked into her eyes. I
didn’t want this night to end, but as if on cue, the waiter showed
up and dropped the bill on the table.

“
I’d like that.” Her tone
was suddenly sad. I gave her a questioning look, but she flashed me
one of her dazzling smiles and I completely forgot.

Leaving a hefty tip, I helped Autumn
with her jacket and we strolled out of the restaurant arm in arm.
The winter breeze had calmed during dinner giving the entire lake a
peaceful silence. We stopped outside the entrance as she tugged on
her knitted gloves, her slender fingers wiggling into the fabric.
The night had gone so quickly, and my heart was already feeling the
ache of knowing I would have to say goodnight soon.

“
Want to go for a walk
along the dock?” she asked, hooking her arm through
mine.

“
I’d love to.” It took all
the strength I had to keep from jumping up and down.

The wooden dock wound around the
restaurant and branched off into a maze of pathways. Dozens of
boats were tied down ranging from simple fishing boats, to
extravagant yachts.

“
Have you ever been on a
boat?” she asked, taking in the luxury of one of the yachts. It had
been named Catalina. “I’ve always wanted to ride in
one.”

“
You’ve never ridden one?”
I asked, surprised. She shook her head, pointing to a set of speed
boats beside the Catalina.

“
How about I take you on a
boat ride this summer?” It had been ages since I sailed, but I
imagined after a short time I would get my sea legs
back.

“
That would be amazing!”
she seemed thoroughly excited, running her fingers along the
railing of a house boat.

“
Then it’s a date,” I
said, triumphantly. We walked through the labyrinth of docks,
talking about what our favorite boat was and what we would name it
if we owned one. When we reached the end of the dock that pointed
out toward the center of the lake, we stood and watched the vessels
that floated on the glassy surface of the water in the distance.
Faint hints of music and laughter were carried across the water to
our ears. One of the boats was playing a classic ballad, a romantic
string of notes that I knew very well. ‘Stranger on the Shore’, I
couldn’t have picked a better song.

“
Can I have this dance?” I
made a small bow toward Autumn like a distinguished gentlemen, my
left hand pressed to my lower back and my right offered to her. A
small titter escaped her lips as her fingers clasped in mine. I
pulled her close to me as our bodies rocked slowly back and forth.
The music grew louder and louder as the boat drew closer to shore.
Her head was pressed against my chest, her small hand cupped in
mine as we swayed and before I knew it I was whispering the words
to the song.

“
Here I stand, watching
the tide go out, so all alone and blue…” The beautiful song of the
clarinet fluttered around us, and I felt my heart melt for this
precious woman in my arms.

“
Just dreaming dreams of
you,” she whispered the next line of the song, as her head turned
up to mine. I could feel her heart hammering against my chest, and
mine began to pound in sync as I knelt down and pressed my lips to
hers.

Her warm lips were as soft as a
feather, meeting mine with a curious passion. She released my hand,
wrapping her arms around me in a tight embrace as our mouths
mingled together. I let my fingers travel upward through her hair,
sending shivers through my body that I’d never felt. As they
reached her neck I felt the familiar urge to bite her, but I pushed
it away. I didn’t want to bite her; I wanted to love
her.

Breathless, she pulled away, her
doe-like eyes gazing at mine in an affectionate haze. She looked at
me like she’d known me her whole life; with a devotion I had not
yet earned. No woman had ever laid eyes on me like this before, and
the power of the affection emanating from her made my knees buckle.
I had seen lust, I had seen absolute fear; but I had never seen
anything like this. Could this dear, lovely angel ever love
me?

“
William…” As she said my
name her face cringed in agonizing pain. Her tiny fingers clenched
desperately to my coat as her body shuddered violently. In one
horrifying second she was smiling up at me, and the next I saw her
lifeless body falling for the lake.

Without even thinking I unleashed the
vampire inside of me, flinging my body around so I could catch her
as she fell backward. Her body landed heavily in my arms, and my
heart landed just as heavily in my chest. Panic slashed chasms
inside me as I clutched her against me.

“
Autumn? Autumn?” I shook
her in my arms, patting her cheek, and trying desperately to wake
her up. “Come on angel, wake up!”

I shook her again as hot tears raced
with fire down my face. I knew I had to get a hold of myself, but
fear was squeezing my insides. The sight of her vacant eyes snapped
me into place. I refused to let her go. I couldn’t; not when I’d
just found her.

Setting her body flat on the dock, I
tore open her jacket; placing my fingers on her chest. There it
was; a heartbeat. Incredibly faint, so much so that no machine
could sense, but me…I could. As my vampire instincts slowly began
to take control, so did the urge to bite her.

Just one bite.

No one will ever
know.

She’s so innocent, and
pure. She’ll taste incredible!

My mouth began to water as the evil,
yet familiar thoughts, rambled through my mind. I could feel my
fangs descending; ready to pierce into her supple flesh. But the
scent of her sweet perfume fluttered into my senses and snapped me
back into reality.

With my fangs piercing my lips, I
began CPR. I tilted her head upward, and placed my mouth against
hers. Pinching her nose I blew two deep breaths into her before
beginning compressions. I continued thirty times before repeating,
and going through the whole cycle countless times. Minutes felt
like hours until she suddenly coughed violently.

A stream of tears poured down my face
as I pulled her up into my arms. “You’re okay. You’re okay,” I
cooed to her as she shuddered in my embrace. I could sense her slow
heartbeat and ragged breathing, but she was alive! I knew I had to
get her to the hospital, but it was more than twelve miles away.
Shady Willows was only minutes and they should have everything
needed to get her stable until help arrived.

Knowing she wasn’t out of the woods
yet, I lifted her into my arms and began to jog down the dock, back
toward the parking lot. I didn’t care who saw me, I pushed my speed
as high as I could without shaking Autumn too violently. Her head
was cradled against my shoulder, and I was so afraid she would stop
breathing again. I had no idea what happened, but I wasn’t going to
let it happen again. Maybe she’d had an allergic reaction, or
perhaps it was too cold out? Damn me for not offering her my
jacket! I was such a fool! This was all my fault!

I reached the SUV in seconds, sliding
to a stop beside the passenger door. Balancing her weight against
my chest, I released one hand to fish for my keys. I fumbled with
them as my nerves got the best of me, but managed to press the
button and unlock the door. It creaked as I flung it open, not
paying attention to the amount of strength I was using; a fatal
flaw of most vampires. We could snap a person’s neck in half
without even thinking.

I had to be careful, my panicked state
was making me lose control and I needed to be gentle with Autumn. I
lifted her up, placing her as carefully into the passenger seat as
I could. She coughed again, her head rolling back and forth as I
attempted to fasten her lap belt. I stepped up, trying to reach
over her waist to latch it when her fingers were on my face. I met
her face, trying to hide the sheer terror that had cemented my
features, when her fingers traced along my jaw and down to my
mouth. I had completely forgotten about them until her fingers slid
across my lips and down the side of fang. Her brow furrowed
slightly before her eyes met mine again. All I could think to do
was close my mouth and hope that she would forget she ever saw
them. The knowing look in her eyes told me otherwise. I was ready
for her to scream, or to look at me in disgust but she simply
cupped my cheek as her eyes closed and her head fell to the
side.

My fingers flew to her throat. She was
still breathing. I latched her lap belt and shut the door before
racing to the driver’s seat and cursing myself the entire time. How
could I be so careless? I let her see me! What will happen when she
wakes up? Stupid, foolish vampire!

I latched onto her hand as the SUV
rocketed down the lake road. We would be there in minutes; she was
going to be okay. I had to keep reassuring myself, just so I would
believe it. My eyes flickered over to her every other second to
make sure she was still there; still alive. Was the world really so
cruel that it would bring her into my life, only to take her away?
If such a world existed I wasn’t sure I could exist with
it.

~

9

Awake

“
She’s awake,” Maryann
said, shaking my shoulder and startling me out of my vacant stare.
I jumped out of my seat on the couch, kicking over the coffee table
in our employee break room. My untouched cup of vending machine
coffee and countless abandoned magazines fell to the
floor.

She had been one of the few staff on
duty when I ran in with Autumn in my arms. Before I was even able
to speak a word, Maryann started barking orders as if she knew
exactly what was wrong. At the time I was too worried to question
it, and I was grateful I didn’t have to talk. It was bad enough I
revealed myself to Autumn, but if Maryann saw my fangs there would
be no way to hide it.

“
Is she okay? Do you know
what happened?” Questions flew out of me as I fumbled to get the
coffee table right side up; I’d never been so uncoordinated in all
my life. Maryann had kicked me out of the room saying my
nervousness was making it hard for her to concentrate. Almost two
hours had gone by as I waited for word if Autumn was
alright.

“
I think you should talk
to her about that,” she said, her tone uncharacteristically
gentle.

“
Talk to her about what?!”
I marched toward her, clenching my jaw to keep my fangs from
descending again. They’d only retracted minutes before she arrived
and any tiny flux in my temper would make them fling out like a
spring loaded switch blade.

“
It’s her decision whether
or not she wants you to know,” she roared back at me, her normal
aggressive tone returning. “And since you obviously don’t already
know, then maybe she doesn’t want you to.”

She snapped around like a soldier,
turning on her heel before heading for the door. Her words only
solidified that there was definitely something wrong, and I
couldn’t let her leave without telling me. I leaped over the couch,
reaching the door just before she did.

“
Please!” I pleaded,
bracing myself between the doorframe. “At least tell me she’s
okay.”

She exhaled a sigh of annoyance, and
rolled her eyes at me before she spoke. “She’s as good as she can
be. She wants to talk to you.”

I breathed a quick thank you before
flinging myself down the hallway, my feet pounding against the
cheap linoleum toward Autumn’s room. Her door was sitting open, and
I slid to a stop before peering inside. As much as I wanted to see
her, I was afraid to. What if she wasn’t really okay, or what if
she wanted to tell me to leave her alone? This was entirely my
fault. I shouldn’t have taken her out on the docks on such a cold
night. Humans were so much more fragile than I realized. How could
I be so stupid to forget that?

“
Are you going to come
in?” Autumn’s weak voice called out to me from inside her room.
That sound was all I needed to boost me inside. My normally light
footing stomped through the modest living space toward her bedroom.
A small bedside lamp lit the space with as much orange light as a
single candle. My eyes scanned the array of machines, housing
blinking lights that flashed harshly through the room. I stepped
farther in, bumping into the footboard before my eyes settled on
her. She was smiling at me, an oxygen tube draped across her face.
I inspected her, my eyes raking up and down her body making sure
she was really there; that the world hadn’t taken her away from me.
She was tucked under a familiar quilt, her arms lying casually over
her stomach. An IV hung from her left arm and a blood pressure
strap over her right. Aside from that she looked…okay.